Retail

Safeway and Giant Eagle are rolling out the inMarket Mobile to Mortar iBeacon location sensing platform at more than 150 grocery stores in Seattle, San Francisco and Cleveland, with additional retailers and markets launching in the coming months.

iBeacons are micro-location technology that use a low-energy Bluetooth signal to enable unique mobile app experiences based on the customer’s location in the store.

Hayward, Calif. – Posiflex is announcing an intelligent foldable base for its XT series of 15-inch touchscreen terminals, now available for purchase, at the National Retail Federation Conference and Exposition 2014. The sleek new fold-flat design optimizes height and viewing angles to satisfy a variety of cashier and user viewing positions. This foldable form results in a 40% reduction in the package size and weight to reduce deployment shipping costs.  

Framingham, Mass. – Staples and Zonoff are expanding the Staples Connect platform in stores and online, including new ecosystem device partners, support for additional wireless protocols, and the opening of a Manhattan in-store display. Companies announcing support for the 2014 expansion of the Staples/Zonoff ecosystem include Kwikset, Netgear, Radio Thermostat, Centralite, Withings, Waxman, Goji, Koubachi, and Rachio.

Despite the short holiday season, December was still the biggest shopping month of the year.

Shopper traffic up more than one-third over November

Austin, Texas -- Shoppers with registered devices and retailer mobile apps made more store visits during the 2013 holiday season than during the previous year’s holiday season. According to data from mobile analytics provider Digby, mobile consumers made 29.6% more store visits during the 2013 holidays than in 2012.

Plano, Texas -- J.C. Penney issued a brief statement on Wednesday saying that it was "pleased” with its performance for the holiday selling period, and reaffirmed its fourth quarter fiscal 2013 guidance for increased same-store sales. But the retailer did not provide any specific sales data.

Former Kohl’s and Carhartt merchandising executive Sue Fuller was named chief merchandising officer at Vera Bradley, an upscale retailer and designer brand looking to restore growth under the leadership of new CEO Robert Wallstrom.

Los Angeles — The retail availability rate fell 70 basis points in 2013, reaching 12% and reflecting continued net absorption gains, according to a report from CBRE. The rate fell 30 basis points in the fourth quarter, which matches the momentum of the first half of 2013 after a flat third quarter.